1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to boots of the rear-entry type having an upper comprising two portions. In such boots at least one of the two portions of the upper is journalled on a rigid shell base. Such boots can be particularly adapted for alpine skiing, ice hockey, and other similar disciplines. The invention relates more particularly to a closing apparatus for automatically closing and latching the upper after the foot is introduced into the boot.
2. Description of Background Information
Various devices have been studied and applied to ski boots presently available on the market for facilitating insertion and removal of the foot from the boot, which are simple and easy to open and close particularly during skiing. The devices currently on the market are much different than those that were originally developed. Originally, boots employed laces to facilitate the insertion and removal of the foot from the boot. Laces were slowly replaced in the course of time by buckle and hook closures, of which a given number (generally four or five) were distributed along the top of the boot. With the evolution of this technology and the technology of the shoe designs, the number of closure and tightening elements was slowly reduced so that only a single element was necessary. It soon became clear that the use of a single closure element or latch was particularly well adapted for use in rear-entry boots, as is evidenced by the numerous products presently on the market, such as the type described in French Pat. No. 2,275,166, for example.
However, until recently, these single closure latches were adapted to surround the perimeter of the lower leg of the skier and the skier was required to manipulate the element with his hands. The single manipulation of a single tightening and closure apparatus, although requiring less effort than previous designs using a plurality of closure elements was not particularly desirable because women and children could not manipulate this type of latch as easily as would be desired. As a result, certain manufacturers have continued to develop means for closing and opening ski boots so as to render them easier to use.
The boots which have been improved to overcome the above-discussed problems all include a single double action lever for closing and tightening the boot. The lever is journalled on a rear spoiler of the boot and cooperates with one end of two cables. The two cables are connected at their other end to a front portion of the upper. The tightening force exerted by the double action lever causes a traction on the two cables which, in turn, causes the rear spoiler and the front portion of the upper to be brought together, and eventually results in the tightening of the boot around the lower leg when the double lever is completely folded down beyond the dead point of an elbow apparatus formed respectively by a direction changer positioned on the rear spoiler, by the journal axis around which the double action lever pivots, and by the attachment point or points of the cables on the lever.
Such a boot can be designed in many different ways, and the double lever can comprise many different designs.
According to a first embodiment that has been developed, the lever comprises a double armed lever, adapted to pivot around a journal axis which is positioned at a distance 2/10 the length of the lever from one end of the lever. In this embodiment the two cables are upper and lower cables attached respectively to each of the lever arms. When the skier wishes to close and tighten the boot, the skier exerts a downward force on the longer arm of the lever which serves to simultaneously apply a downward traction on the upper cable and an upward traction on the lower cable. This in turn causes the front moveable portion of the upper and the journalled rear spoiler to come together. Such a boot construction represents an improvement for the skier because no more than a single manipulation is required to tighten and close the boot. However, the sides of the boot require complicated cable circuits, and young children and women still have difficulty in closing the lever, which requires a large closure force.
According to a second embodiment that has been developed, the double armed lever comprises a first lever journalled directly on the rear spoiler and a second lever journalled on the median portion of the first lever. The two linking cables are then attached to this second lever at two points slightly spaced apart from one another, such that the difference in lengths of the cables positioned at different levels on the upper can be absorbed during closing of the boot. In this embodiment as well, the complexity of construction increases the manufacturing cost of the boot thereby detracting from the attractiveness of this boot, which resides in the need for only a single manipulation to close the boot.
In French Patent Application No. 83 20 413, an attempt was made to construct a ski boot having a closing and tightening system for which manual intervention is either entirely eliminated, at least partially eliminated, or which requires the force of only the user's pinkey finger to close the boot.
Such a ski boot is composed of a rigid shell base and an upper. The upper comprises at least two portions, at least one of which is journalled on the shell base. Also provided are latching and closing means for latching and closing the two upper portions together. These latching and closing means comprise at least one flexible linking element connected at one of its ends at an attachment point which may be adjustable on one of the portions of the upper, and at least one direction changing element mounted on the upper and on which the linking element is at least partially wound. The other end of the linking element is connected to a traction element provided on the other portion of the upper. The traction element is journalled on one of the portions of the upper against the force of an elastic return element which permanently exerts a return moment for closing the traction element and maintaining the linking element constantly stretched between its two ends for all open and closed positions of the two portions of the upper.
This boot overcomes the disadvantages of other previously developed boots because as a result of the traction element being biased with respect to the upper of the boot, it is possible to put on the boot and to close and tighten the boot around the lower leg of the skier with virtually no effort required on the part of the skier himself or herself.
However, although such an integrated closure apparatus allows one to automatically close and latch the boot, in order to open this boot, the skier must perform a manual manipulation, i.e. the hand or foot of the skier must pull the lever. As a result, the release of the foot from the boot can occur only as a result of a voluntary action on the part of the skier, thereby preventing premature opening which is undesirable from the point of view of safety.
In all variations on this device the traction element will assume at least two positions. In a first position, the boot is automatically closed. In a second position, the boot is open. In this open position the traction element releases the length of the linking element necessary to allow pivoting of the two portions of the upper relative to one another, so as to permit the foot to be introduced into the boot. In certain devices the traction element assumes a third position known as an intermediate or pre-closed position, beyond which the skier completes the closing movement of the traction element on the upper. In these devices the bulk of the force needed to close and latch the boot is furnished by the return moment of the elastic apparatus.
According to its general design, this boot comprises, in all embodiments, a linking element for linking together the two portions of the upper by means of a direction changing element and an adjustable attachment means for attaching the linking element to the two portions of the upper. The adjustable attachment means is positioned on one of the portions of the upper, and the direction changing element is positioned on the other portion of the upper. The direction changing element serves to retransmit along another direction the traction force exerted by the traction element on the linking element with which it cooperates. If desired, the position of the direction changing element itself can also be adjustable. The linking element, under the action of the elastic return apparatus of the traction element remains constantly subjected to a tension and is permanently taut, regardless of the relative position of the two portions of the upper with respect to one another.
This automatic closing and latching apparatus is entirely satisfactory from a technical viewpoint. However, there is a need for an apparatus which provides the same result using a simpler and more practical design, which would, as a result, be less costly.
French Pat. No. 2,536,254 proposes another device for automatically closing and latching the boot by means of the action of a single foot or ski pole on a manipulation lever. This device, which also produces satisfactory results, although the boot does not close and latch as automatically as in the previous device, is relatively complicated because it utilizes a complicated cable system. In this cable system the cables follow complicated paths around a guidance element attached to the rear spoiler of the upper which serves as a direction changer for changing the direction of the cables between their attachment points on the cuff and the manipulation lever.
In the two boots which have just been described a linking cable is attached to the cuff and extends between the attachment points of the linking cable or cables to the elements of the upper. The manipulation lever serves to stretch the cables into the closed and latched position. In addition, the cable or cables are guided by fixed elements on the rear spoiler. These fixed elements can be guidance and direction changing conduits.
Thus, in summary, there is a need for a boot which produces equivalent results to the two boots just described but which is structurally more simple and more reliable by avoiding the use of guidance and direction changing elements on the rear spoiler.